Are you already operating with an omnichannel marketing approach?

Most businesses that believe they’re already on their omnichannel marketing journey aren’t quite there yet. They’re actually still operating with a multichannel marketing strategy. That doesn’t make them unsuccessful or at risk. Both strategies have their own benefits, but understanding their differences and long-term effects is crucial for growth.

Let’s explore them further:

Multichannel marketing

If your various channels are siloed and work individually rather than integrated, you have a multichannel marketing strategy. The main advantage is the ability to grab the attention of as many people as possible, favouring volume overall.

So, the data and results from your TV campaign don’t trickle into your email marketing campaigns, for example. When used in the right way, multichannel marketing can have some benefits. Commercially, you don’t have as significant an outlay into technology investment. So, if you’re pushing to reach more customers and test new markets before honing in on which channels to leverage, multichannel marketing can be helpful for research. It’s also a useful approach in peak seasons, perhaps when looking to run a Christmas campaign when advertising to the masses is more important to you than personalisation (and that’s ok!). 

Often confused as being the budget option of the two, you still need the right tech stack to streamline your multichannel marketing strategy. Otherwise, once volumes hit, if you’re unable to automate a significant portion of your traffic, you’ll become overwhelmed as a business grows. As a result, you start to sacrifice your quality of service, your customers will begin to see inconsistent customer experience and personalisation, you will have limited integration between channels, and it will be incredibly challenging to track performance; making budget and ROI conversations tricky with stakeholders. 

The biggest and often overlooked challenge for multichannel marketing is creating more silos within your business. 

Multichannel risks important data within departmental silos, which is useless across your entire organisation. Data can make a transformative difference in retail, for good or bad. Without complete data on your consumers over their online and offline behaviours and buying habits, you risk alienating your customers by either missing opportunities or missing the mark entirely and giving them an impersonal experience. Without cohesion, you can be over-targeting the same customer with different messages or bombarding them with irrelevant deals.

Multichannel marketing can be useful when engaging new customers, but omnichannel marketing elevates your digital experience through enhanced personalisation. The 2023 state of personalisation report demonstrates that personalisation delivers real returns, with over half (56%) of consumers admitting they will become repeat buyers after a personalised experience, with brands expecting a 7% increase year-on-year. It’s a no-brainer. 

Omnichannel

Comparatively, omnichannel marketing is where your channels seamlessly exist. Zendesk’s 2023 report demonstrates that this is something 73% of consumers explicitly expect. A consistent and informative online presence can influence offline purchases and vice versa. 

They undoubtedly sound similar. All omnichannel marketing strategies are also multichannel marketing strategies, but not all multichannel marketing strategies are omnichannel marketing strategies. Phew.

Omnichannel marketing meets your customers where they are instead of waiting for your customers to visit your website or store. 

With an ecosystem of prompts, drivers, and inspiration to buy, you’re likely to drive more sales and more footfall. According to a 2023 report by the Unity Group, compared to single-channel shoppers, multichannel customers spend up to 9% more in-store – and 10% more online. Comparatively, omnichannel marketing strategies increase incremental in-person retail visits by up to 80%. 

In a post-pandemic retail world, despite its challenge, it’s clear to see that there is still a place for side-by-side channels. As consumers are starting to prioritise a personalised experience when looking for brands to spend their money with, it’s only natural that an omnichannel marketing approach is the best choice to utilise.

Omnichannel marketing is not a passing trend or a nice thing to have. It’s an increasing expectation from customers. Because they’re used to seeing it from global companies with large budgets, it’s noticeable to spot other businesses that haven’t invested in a seamless and personal experience. Businesses that don’t adapt will see their business fade away. Now, customers expect a certain standard of engagement. The e-commerce boom has given prospective buyers a choice. Adopting omnichannel marketing gives you a higher chance to be a retailer they choose. 

Regardless of where you are on your journey, let’s deep dive into what omnichannel marketing looks like, together. For help with your omnichannel marketing strategy, then get in touch at [email protected]. We’d be delighted to explore your options with you.